Edition:

Lack of transparency undermining primary education in Africa

Transparency International's report looking at education systems in seven African countries, including Uganda, raises concerns over financial accountability in schools and a lack of interest among parents in how schools are run

A glaring lack of mutual accountability between primary schools and parents, poor financial record keeping and bad management is threatening the quality of basic education in seven African countries, including Uganda.

A report by Transparency International (TI), published today, found schools in Uganda, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Senegal, Morocco, Madagascar and Niger had poor governance systems and practices, with limited availability of financial documentation at district education offices and schools, which was impeding progress in achieving the six aims of the Education For All (EFA) initiative and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The survey also revealed a lack of interest by parents in the running of schools.

The report's publication comes as the three-day EFA high level group meeting opens in Ethiopia. The annual meeting, which runs until Thursday, will bring together representatives from national governments, NGOs, UN agencies, civil society groups and the private sector to discuss progress towards the EFA goals and the MDGs. The meeting will consider recommendations made in the EFA global monitoring report, published in December, that examined the impact of the global financial downturn on education. The report was highly critical of national governments and the donor community's commitment to meeting education targets.

Governance concerns

The EFA report, however, did not address the issue of governance. Transparency International maintains that without good governance the scarce resources available for education will be wasted. It believes more thought needs to be given to management training and building expertise locally to ensure money is well spent.

TI, through its three-year Africa Education Watch (AEW) programme, which began in 2007, assesses the management of public funds in the primary education system in seven African countries (countries were selected based on the presence of a TI chapter in the country and for social economic and cultural differences). AEW examines whether decentralised education systems have been successful in controlling corruption and making primary school administrations more accountable. Within the last two decades, all seven countries mentioned in today's report have abolished tuition fees and have, to some extent, adopted more decentralised administrative systems in an attempt to bring education closer to the people and to give local communities more say in how schools are run. Niger has yet to devolve financial management responsibilities to regional or district levels.

Decentralisation in four of the countries – Ghana, Madagascar, Sierra Leone and Uganda - has meant that education is funded through grants sent from central to regional offices and that structures like school management committees (SMCs) and PTAs play a larger oversight role.

The survey's findings show that despite an international focus on improving access to education over recent years, which has led to higher enrolment rates, existing school systems were hindering progress.

The report suggests that while decentralisation may seem a good idea, the implementation is failing, with many of the structures not playing their envisaged roles. The result has been poor performance in several aspects, including financial records, which were either missing or deficient in 85% of the schools surveyed.

"Additionally, the unpredictability of when and how much funding or resources reach schools undermines both planning and any meaningful financial oversight," the report said.

Sources of funding were not always recorded, which raised issues about transparency. Overall, 64% of schools surveyed did not publish any budgetary information at all. Ghana and Senegal were found to be the worst in this respect – with 80% and 85% of schools respectively not displaying any information.

But the survey also found that, on average, 80% of parents in the surveyed countries did not try to access financial information about their children's schools. Ghanaian parents were the most interested, but still 65% had not tried to get information. Morocco was the worst, with 93% of parents showing no interest. The figure for Uganda was 82%.

"Some feel constrained by their lack of education or literacy, but many express a lack of interest, which poses important questions in terms of how to make local oversight and citizen monitoring of service-delivery a reality," said the report.

Influencing decisions

A pupil at Amorikot primary school. Photograph: Dan Chung

The report highlighted regional differences in the extent to which parents can influence school decisions. In Uganda, only half of parents believe that they have the power to influence decisions, whereas 96% of headteachers believe that parents have these powers – if they used them. In Ghana, 71% of parents believed they have influence, compared with 64% of headteachers. Morocco had the lowest percentage for both. Just 20% of parents believed they held sway, while 37% of heads believed parents had any power.

The report also found limited participation among parents and guardians in SMCs and PTAs, especially among women and poorer female and poorer community members. These bodies tended to be dominated by wealthier men.

The survey also found that school systems were affected by corrupt practices such as embezzlement of public funds, the collection of registration fees, despite their legal abolition (40% of parents surveyed reported paying school registration fees in Uganda. In Morocco the figure was 90%), and abuse of power by teachers (alcoholism, absenteeism and sexual exploitation of children). The majority of parents surveyed in Sierra Leone, Senegal and Uganda believed corruption was prevalent, while fewer parents held this view in the other four states. Independent bodies to combat corruption have been set up in Sierra Leone, Madagascar and Senegal; Uganda is currently drafting legislation to set up something similar.

Stephane Stassen, senior programme coordinator at TI, who leads the AEW programme, said increasing school enrolment was not enough to bring about lasting change. "To ensure true, lasting progress in education levels and best use of the scarce resources available, oversight and accountability must be improved," she said. "Poor accounting and reported diversions of budgeted funds clearly show that funding must come with better management capacity and accountability mechanisms."

The report called on education ministries to clarify and publicise the roles and responsibilities of regional and district education authorities, as well as of parents, SMCs and PTAs and the running of schools.

It also argued that parents needed to be made aware of the benefits of well-run schools in their communities. The report said training for PTAs and management committees in, for example, financial management, was critical, but recognised that the high turnover of SMC members meant that any training would require long-term commitment. In Uganda only 53% of SMC members surveyed had been trained, but the situation was worse in Morocco (7%), Madagascar (23%) and Ghana (28%).

"Ministries of education and civil society organisations should organise national campaigns to increase awareness of the parental role in monitoring school performance, including finance and resource management, and to highlight the role of locally elected bodies in guaranteeing accountability in schools," the report recommended.

"Civil society organisation programmes that empower communities and promote their participation in school management and oversight should be supported and financed by international development partners, as well as allowed and encouraged by ministries of education," it added.

Education in Katine

To a degree, the African Medical and Research Foundation (Amref) has already been implementing some of these recommendations in Uganda as part of the education component of the Katine project.

Over the last two years, Amref has organised several training workshops for SMCs and PTAs in Katine sub-county, in north-east Uganda, to encourage greater participation among parents in the running of schools. Topics covered have included financial management.

Last month, the headteacher of Amorikot primary school in Katine, Moses Emesu, backed up the report's findings. He told the Guardian that parents needed to be better educated because they did not show any interest in the affairs of the school.

Amorikot was built in 2008 by the Katine Project, being implemented by Amref and funded by Guardian readers and Barclays, but has struggled, amid dwindling support from both parents and local government.

Global monitoring

Today's EFA high level meeting in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa will discuss the outcomes of the 2010 EFA global monitoring report.

The report criticised the donor community for its "collective failure" to act on its pledge in 2000 to support all countries that were committed to education for all.

The report claimed that rich countries and financial institutions had exaggerated the amount of aid they had provided. "Rich countries have mobilised a financial mountain to stabilise their financial systems and protect vital social and economic infrastructure, but they have provided an aid molehill for the world's poor," said the global monitoring report's director, Kevin Watkins.

The report also called for the reform of the Fast Track Initiative, established in 2002 to speed up the disbursement of funds for education and give developing countries a greater say in implementing education policy. The EFA report said payout rates were very low and developing countries had "a weak voice" when it came to decision-making.